


Nightmares & Violins

by 100SleeplessNights



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Aromantic Draco, Aromantic Harry, Asexual Draco Malfoy, Asexual Harry Potter, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Fluff, Good Draco Malfoy, Grimmauld Place, M/M, Nightmares, Order of the Phoenix AU, Violins, qpr, queer platonic relationship
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-08-06
Updated: 2018-09-18
Packaged: 2018-12-11 21:20:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 13,360
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11722791
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/100SleeplessNights/pseuds/100SleeplessNights
Summary: When Harry wakes up from a nightmare he hears a beautiful melody and decides to follow it to its origin.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [viole_n_tlesbian](https://archiveofourown.org/users/viole_n_tlesbian/gifts).



> This is based on a prompt from the lovely [viole-n-tlesbian](https://viole-n-tlesbian.tumblr.com/) on tumblr.  
> The prompt was: "I've always had this headcanon that Draco was a very talented musician, trained from a young age in piano or violin or such, so maybe you could write about the relationship growing via Harry hearing Draco play for the first time. Maybe its during the war, they're holed up in grimauld place, Draco has switched sides, and Harry hears a beautiful melody drifting through the halls. He's so unable to sleep, he can't think of anything better than to follow it. Cue heartfelt conversations."  
> I hope you enjoy!

“Avada Kedavra!” Voldemort shouted and while Harry saw the curse flying in his direction he couldn’t move out of its path. It came closer and just like the previous few nights Harry woke up when it was just an inch from his chest.

It took Harry a few seconds to reorient himself but then he remembered he was at 12 Grimmauld Place. Only… something was different to the other nights he had woken up in the middle of the night. He could hear more than just Ron’s snores from the bed opposite of his. It almost sounded like – yes, it was some kind of melody.

He knew he wouldn’t be able to fall back asleep anytime soon anyway so he got up to investigate the – admittedly beautiful – melody.

It came from the room two doors down from the one he shared with Ron – Malfoy’s room. But why would Malfoy listen to music in the middle of the night? There was only one way to find out.

Harry just wanted to open the door when he heard the melody stop suddenly.

“Fuck!” Malfoy exclaimed. Was Malfoy… practising? Harry had never seen him with an instrument before but he had to admit, the thought was intriguing. In a way the soft sounds fit Malfoy.

Without thinking further about it – because that was a thing he was good at, not thinking things through – Harry went through with his original plan of just barging in before his curiosity killed him.

Malfoy set his instrument against his chin, probably to start playing again after his mistake but when he saw Harry in the doorway he froze.

“What the fuck are you doing here, Potter?” he snapped a few seconds later.

Harry rolled his eyes. He knew Malfoy was right to ask him that but he still felt like snapping back. “I could ask you the same. How is anyone supposed to sleep with this background noise?”

Malfoy grinned. “It seems you’re the only one bothered by it. Should I play a lullaby for you, Potter?”

Harry knew Malfoy probably only meant it as a joke but he was curious whether he would go through with it.

“Bring it on, Malfoy.”

True to Harry’s expectation, Malfoy seemed taken aback by his answer but he caught himself a second later.

“Maybe you should sit down first. I heard falling asleep while standing up is not pleasant.”

“Are you worried about my comfort, Malfoy?” Harry asked. He was surprised how different Malfoy acted now in comparison to their interactions during the day.

Malfoy raised an eyebrow. “Of course not. I’m just confident in my skills and don’t want to be on the receiving end of anyone’s hexes in case something happens to you while you’re in my room.”

Harry rolled his eyes again but went with Malfoy’s advice. He should be glad Malfoy hadn’t hexed him on sight and shouldn’t test his luck again so soon.

He went to sit down on the bed that looked the least slept in of the two but before he could sit down, Malfoy exclaimed “Stop! That’s my bed, you heathen. Sit on the other one if you have to.”

Harry sighed. He should have known Malfoy’s bed would look neater than the unoccupied one Molly had only made once, a week ago when Malfoy had first arrived. He did as Malfoy asked but instead of sitting down he lay down on the bed and tucked himself in just to spite Malfoy. Malfoy didn’t comment on it and just started playing once Harry stopped moving.

The lullaby Malfoy played was beautiful, even more so than the melody he had played before. It was incredibly soothing. Malfoy had, at least in Harry’s inexperienced eyes, every right to be confident in his skills. In fact, Harry could already feel himself drifting off and even though he was in Malfoy’s room and had been worried only a few hours ago that switching sides was just a part of Malfoy’s plot to help Voldemort win the war, he didn’t fight sleep. Instead he let it embrace him and just a few minutes later he was back asleep.

 

The next night, Harry had the same nightmare and once again he woke up to the sounds of Malfoy practising his instrument, though it was a different melody than the ones he had heard the night before.

As Malfoy had neither killed him in his sleep the night before, nor thrown him out in the morning, Harry figured it was safe to go to his room again. This time, though, he knocked and waited for an answer instead of simply barging in.

“Yes?” Malfoy called out.

Harry slowly opened the door and stepped inside. Malfoy was once again standing in the middle of the room with his instrument resting against his chin.

“Potter,” Malfoy greeted him much less surprised than he had been the night before. “You’re back. Is my playing keeping you from your sleep again or will you tell me what is really going on tonight?”

Harry wanted to snap back and tell Malfoy it was none of his business but by coming here Harry had made it Malfoy’s business in a way.

“I woke up from a nightmare,” he admitted after trying to think of a way out of telling the truth for a minute and not finding any. Malfoy had called him out and Harry’s Gryffindor bravery wouldn’t allow him to back down from the challenge. He hoped this general answer was enough for Malfoy because he really didn’t want to go into the details.

Malfoy smirked at him. “That wasn’t so hard, was it? I guess you want me to play another lullaby for you now?”

“I wouldn’t say no to that but I don’t know why you would do that for me. Playing a lullaby for your arch-nemesis isn’t exactly following etiquette, is it?”

Malfoy was silent for a few seconds that felt like an eternity to Harry. When Malfoy finally spoke, Harry thought he would tell him to leave or simply hex him but to his surprise it was neither.

“You’re not my arch-nemesis.”

Those five words surprised Harry more than anything else could have.

“I’m not?” he asked to make sure his ears hadn’t betrayed him.

“No, I… we both made mistakes and now that we’re on the same side of the war I hoped we could have a fresh start and try to be at least acquaintances now.”

Harry was surprised by both Malfoy’s apparent honesty and the vulnerability he could hear in his voice. He had no idea how to fit this into the picture of Malfoy he had painted in his mind during the past years. But maybe it was time to discard that picture and really get to know him.

“Okay,” Harry said and gave Malfoy a small smile. “Is there etiquette for acquaintances?”

Malfoy laughed and Harry had to admit he liked bot the sound of his laugh and the way it transformed his face.

“Well, usually there’s no name-calling but I don’t think we’re quite there yet. Maybe we can try to call each other by our first names and greet each other whenever we cross paths.”

“That sounds doable… Draco.”

“Good. That’s… good… Harry. Now, do you want to hear a lullaby or not?”


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is getting longer than I anticipated. I hope you like it.

Throughout the next two weeks Harry went over to Draco’s room whenever he woke up from a nightmare –which happened more often than he’d have liked – and he was always received with music from Draco’s instrument which Draco told him one night was a violin.

A few nights later, when Harry once again woke up from a nightmare, he woke up to silence. Well, not absolute silence, he still heard Ron snoring on the other side of the room, but he couldn’t hear the by now familiar tones of Draco’s violin.

A curiosity quite like the one he had felt when he had first gone to Draco’s room in the middle of the night, prompted him to visit Draco anyway. He could always leave again if Draco didn’t invite him in or was asleep after all.

 

“Harry,” Draco said when he opened the door and it almost sounded more like a yawn than a name. He didn’t look like he should be awake either. Even in the low light coming from Draco’s room Harry could see Draco’s hair was tousled like he had tossed and turned in his sleep and his eyes were half-closed.

“Draco. Did I wake you?”

Draco shook his head. “I’ve been awake for a while. Come in.”

Harry nodded and suddenly wished he had been the one to wake Draco, that way he wouldn’t have woken up from what was most likely a nightmare if Harry’s own experience was anything to go by.

He followed Draco into his room and sat down on the bed he had occupied whenever he had paid Draco a visit before. This time, though, it was the neater of the two.

“Why aren’t you playing your violin tonight?” Harry asked once Draco had sat down on his own bed opposite from Harry.

Draco shrugged. “Too tired. I tried but it frustrated me more than it calmed me. I need to be properly awake to play anything more complicated than a simple scale.”

“Well, that makes sense, I guess,” Harry said. He didn’t know how to ask Draco why he had woken up in the middle of the night, and how to offer comfort in case he was right and it had indeed been a nightmare that had woken Draco, so he just kept quiet. To Harry’s relief, Draco broke the silence before it could get uncomfortable.

“Go on, ask me,” he prompted with a small smile on his face. “I know you’re dying to.”

“I don’t know how,” Harry admitted. There was no reason for him to act like he didn’t know what Draco was talking about. He knew it was probably plainly visible on his face.

“And I always thought Gryffindors were straight-forward,” Draco scoffed but it held none of the hatred it had for the last four years. In fact, it was almost teasing.

Harry had to smile. He liked this new side of Draco he was getting to know more each night. “That doesn’t mean we never stop to think about the other person’s feelings before asking possibly insensitive questions.”

Draco rolled his eyes. It looked quite strange as his eyes were still partly closed. “I already know what you want to ask me and I’m ready to answer you so there’s no real reason to do that, is there?”

Harry shook his head and felt him smile widen. “I guess not. Imagine that. I was out-Gryffindor-ed by a sleepy Slytherin.”

Harry delighted in Draco’s abrupt but happy laugh. “That’s one way to put it I guess,” Draco said. “Now, get on with the question. If you are hoping I will answer without you asking, your hopes will be in vain.”

Harry smiled at him. “Still a Slytherin, then.”

Draco smiled back and shook his head. “I don’t think you ever doubted that.”

“Not really, no.” Harry smirked when Draco made an impatient noise. Apparently he wanted to get the question over with as much as Harry didn’t want to ask it. “Alright, I’ll just go for it then.”

Draco rolled his eyes – now with his eyes properly open – but still said, “Thank you.”

“Why are you awake, or more precisely why are you awake _again_? You said you have been up for a while.”

Draco sighed. Harry couldn’t fault him for it even though he must have seen the question coming. He knew it wasn’t easy to talk about one’s nightmares or even to admit to having them.

“I…” Draco hesitated and Harry let him take his time with the answer. “Nightmares… I had a nightmare.”

For a second Harry thought of teasing Draco about the confession like Draco had done with him the second night he had visited but he thought better of it. Harry was almost used to his nightmares already but Draco looked quite tortured just by the thought of them.

“Do you want to talk about it?” he gently offered instead. “Sometimes that helps.”

Draco shook his head. “I’d rather talk about anything else.”

“Okay,” Harry said and gave him a soft smile. After a few seconds he asked him the first thing that came to mind. “Which is your favourite professional Quidditch team?”

Draco smiled. “Safe choice. But I won’t complain. I’ve always liked the Falmouth Falcons, it’s kind of the family team, but I also have a soft spot for the Holyhead Harpies.”

Harry thought for a second and then remembered what he had read about the Harpies in _Quidditch through the Ages_. “That’s the all-women team, right?”

“It is. I’m appalled at your lack of knowledge, Potter. I expected you to at least be sure about that.”

“Harry,” Harry corrected but smiled at him. “I haven’t had much experience with professional teams other than Ron’s borderline-unhealthy obsession with the Chudley Cannons and what I’ve read in _Quidditch through the Ages_.”

“Oh, Merlin.” Draco sighed. “You have a lot to learn.”

Harry chuckled. “Well, we have all the time you might need to educate me.”

“I think I will need more than a few nights here and there because I doubt your lack of knowledge begins and ends at professional Quidditch.”

Harry shrugged. Draco was once again right and there was no reason for him to pretend otherwise. “That’s true. But for now we can start with professional Quidditch, that is, if you want to tell me more about it.”

“Don’t worry about that,” Draco assured him and then dove straight into explaining things _Quidditch through the Ages_ hadn’t covered.

 

The next morning Molly started to get worried when by ten o’clock neither Draco Malfoy nor Harry and Ron had come down to the kitchen for breakfast. Draco usually came down at nine and Harry would follow soon after with Ron in tow. After another five minutes of waiting she decided to go upstairs and find out why they were late.

She first knocked on and then slowly opened the door to Draco’s room. When she looked inside she was greeted by a surprising sight. In the second bed in the room, the one that was usually empty Harry slept peacefully and his whole body was turned towards Draco like he had fallen asleep talking to him. If she hadn’t gotten used to strange things happening after raising seven children, she surely would have shrieked at the sight but now she only gasped and hoped neither of the boys would wake up from the slight sound.

She stepped out of the room and closed the door again when she heard the familiar noises of Ron waking up from her right. The boys deserved their sleep so she would do her best to keep Ron from waking them up either by making a ruckus or by storming into Draco’s room demanding what he had done to Harry to make him sleep in his room.

 

For the first time since Harry had first slept in Draco’s room, Draco was still asleep when Harry woke up the next morning. They had talked long into the night so it didn’t surprise him. Neither did the fact that it was already elven o’clock. He wondered however why Ron hadn’t stormed in and demanded to know what spell Draco had cast on him, yet. Not even Ron could sleep for thirteen hours on end, could he?

“Morning,” Draco said from the other bed. Apparently he hadn’t still been asleep after all because he didn’t sound like he just woke up. “Molly was here about an hour ago, what do we tell her when she asks?”

Harry shrugged with the one shoulder he wasn’t lying on. “She didn’t hex you, did she?”

“No. And I also heard her distract the Wea- Ronald with breakfast so he wouldn’t barge in here.”

“Then I guess we should tell her the truth, shouldn’t we? Apparently she doesn’t mind so we won’t have anything to lose, right?”

“Sound reasoning from a Gryffindor, I’m impressed. Even the attempt should deserve an award,” Draco said but his voice resembled more the teasing tone he used at night than the taunting one he still frequently used during the day, so Harry decided to hopefully surprise him at least a little with his reply.

“I could have been a Slytherin.”

Draco was silent for a few seconds. Harry wasn’t quite sure whether he was thinking about what Harry had said or was simply in shock.

“I can see it,” he finally said. “You never could have survived until now without some Slytherin traits to aid you and your extremely good luck. Why weren’t you sorted into Slytherin, though? Was it because of me?”

Harry nodded. “You played a part. But everyone who had been nice to me until that point had told me how evil Slytherins are and that Vol-

“Don’t use his name,” Draco hissed.

“Why? It’s just a name.” Harry was confused. He knew most people didn’t like it when he used Voldemort’s name but Draco sounded like he was straight-out afraid of it.

“It’s not. My father told me it was under a curse during the first war that told the Dark Lord where the one saying his name was. It’s very likely cursed again now that he’s back. We’re under _Fidelius_ here but that wouldn’t keep the Death Eaters from monitoring the area.”

Harry sighed. “This makes another entry in the _List of Things No One Bothered to Tell Harry until Now_.”

“You have a list?” Draco sounded honestly surprised.

“Yes.” Harry sighed again. “I also have one titled _Things Harry Has Asked About But Hasn’t Gotten Answers to Because They Weren’t Important Enough_ and one called _Lies People Told Me “For My Own Good”_. I’m also thinking about starting one detailing all the things I learned in the nick of time to survive just so.”

“You can ask me,” Draco offered. “Maybe I can answer some of your questions. But I think first we should go down to breakfast or Molly will send a search party after all.”

Harry smiled at him. “Thank you. I’d like that. In that case we definitely need more than just the nights to talk, though. But you’re right, we should get breakfast now.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kudos and comments keep me motivated.
> 
> Find me on Tumblr: [@asexual-lovegood](http://asexual-lovegood.tumblr.com/)


	3. Chapter 3

When Harry and Draco finally went down to the kitchen half an hour later (it took Draco almost twenty minutes to look “acceptable”) they were almost immediately presented with two steaming plates full of breakfast food.

“I hope you are hungry,” Molly said with a big smile.

“I definitely am,” Harry said and took both plates off her hands with a smile that wasn’t quite as bright as hers but just as genuine. “Thank you, Molly.”

Draco thanked her as well and followed Harry to the dining table in the middle of the room. There Harry set down the two plates.

“Do you want pumpkin juice?” he asked Draco and when he nodded Harry went and took two glasses from one of the cupboards and filled them with juice.

 

It felt so natural to sit next to Draco and eat breakfast that after a few minutes of silence Harry felt comfortable enough to ask him whether he wanted to have Harry’s sausages.

Draco smiled at him. “So that’s why you never complain when Ronald steals them from your plate.”

Harry blushed. He hadn’t thought it was obvious that Ron usually only took the sausages. “Yes,” he admitted. “I don’t like their texture.”

“Oh. Well, I would be the last person to make fun of you because of that. I don’t like the texture of mushrooms. Maybe we can swap? It looks like you like them just fine.”

Harry nodded still blushing. He had let Ron eat his sausages ever since he had noticed Harry always left them on his plate when Molly made them breakfast and he had gotten used to someone taking something off his plate but actually talking about it was still weird.

“Yes. Thank you.”

 

Molly, who was still preparing lunch next to them, had of course heard Harry and Draco’s short conversation. She scolded herself a little for never noticing Harry didn’t like sausages but at the same time she was glad Ron _had_ noticed.

 

After their breakfast Harry and Draco went to the sitting room next to the kitchen to continue their conversation. Harry only noticed there were other people in the room when he and Draco were already standing in the middle of it.

“Good morning everyone,” Draco said next to him and Harry was almost sure he was wearing the pleasant smile he always did when he had to interact with anyone aside from Harry and maybe Molly. “I hope you don’t mind if we join you for a while.”

“I definitely mind, Malfoy,” Ron snapped. “What are you even doing with Harry? Did you give him some kind of potion?”

Draco sighed almost inaudibly. Harry wanted to as well but instead he gently wrapped his hand around Draco’s wrist to show him he wouldn’t let the accusation stand and took a step towards Ron.

“Draco hasn’t given me any potion. You know as well as I do that Dumbledore searched him thoroughly before he was even allowed to come here and since then he didn’t have access to either potions or the brewing room. The only thing I got from him was his mushrooms from the breakfast plates your mom made for us because he didn’t like them.”

Ron was probably too surprised by Harry defending Draco to say anything but instead Hermione chimed in.

“How do we know he didn’t use a spell on you, then?”

Harry almost rolled his eyes. Had Hermione really forgotten he could shake off the Imperious curse – and probably also every other existing mind-controlling spell?

“I could shake off Crouch’s Imperious,” he reminded her in case she had. “No offense, Draco, but I don’t think you could manipulate my mind better than a Death Eater.”

Draco chuckled. “None taken. I’m pretty sure I don’t want to have that particular skill anyway. But why don’t you finally tell them why we’re here together so we can stop this stupid interrogation?”

Harry blushed. “Yes, maybe that could help.” Without any more hesitation he told them about his nightmares, Draco’s violin playing and the ensuing conversations and sleeping arrangements.

“You could’ve woken me up, mate. I wouldn’t have minded,” Ron insisted and Harry refrained from telling him while he might not have minded, he most likely wouldn’t have understood or been able to comfort him like Draco had. “There’s no need for you to put yourself at the mercy of a Death Eater.”

That, Harry couldn’t stay silent about. “Draco isn’t a Death Eater. Maybe his father is or was, I don’t know and frankly I don’t really care either because Draco _isn’t_.”

“My father was and still is a Death Eater,” Draco said, almost eerily calm and collected. “That played a huge part in me running from home and joining Harry’s side of the war. I can understand why you don’t trust me and I can accept that you maybe won’t ever trust me but please let Harry make his own decisions. He hasn’t put his trust in the wrong people, yet, has he?”

After a few seconds of silence an honest smile spread on Draco’s face. “I thought so. Now, can we join you here or should we find a different room to talk in?”

Sirius was the first one to shake himself out of his stupor. “Stay here so I can have an eye on you, cousin.”

Draco nodded and walked over to the only unoccupied couch in the room which was standing right next to an ottoman George and Fred were sharing. Harry followed him, his hand still wrapped around Draco’s wrist.

“Do you still remember where we left off last night?” Draco asked Harry after they had gotten comfortable next to each other.

“I think it was something about a risky move where the Seeker had to cooperate closely with the Beaters.”

“Beaters you say?” George asked.

“Tell us more,” Fred added.

Draco looked them over for a few seconds and then nodded. “Yes, I think you can pull it off with Harry.”

“But how do we know,” George said.

“You’re not trying to sabotage us, Malfoy?” Fred finished.

Draco shrugged. “You can’t know for sure of course but I doubt I will be welcome on the Quidditch team next year or even in the common room, because while the majority of Slytherin students aren’t Death Eater children those who are have a lot of influence between them. To be honest, I would rather see Hufflepuff get the House Cup than Slytherin next year but I think Gryffindor has the best chance at actually getting it.”

Harry chuckled. “So, basically your Slytherin reasoning tells you who to support?”

Draco’s grin was almost bursting with confidence. “I use Slytherin reasoning for everything, you should know that. But having a friend in Gryffindor definitely helped the decision along. I just hope there is a shade of red that suits me.”

“Don’t worry, Malfoy,” George assured him.

“We’ll find an outfit for you,” Fred promised him.

“After you’ve explained this intriguing manoeuvre to us.”

 

Harry, George and Fred were still discussing the best situations to use the move in when Molly entered the room and told them it was time for lunch.

It only took Ron half a second to get up and hurry out of the room closely followed by George and Fred. Harry, Draco, Sirius and Hermione followed them at a more sedate pace, knowing there would still be enough food left for them no matter how much the Weasley siblings ate before they arrived – if Molly even allowed them to start eating before everyone was there.

Harry and Draco sat down between Fred and George who looked like they had kept the chairs between them empty on purpose.

“Thank you, Messieurs Weasley,” Draco said with an overly posh air.

“You’re welcome, Heir Malfoy,” Fred replied in a more mocking tone.

Draco frowned. “Let’s see how many times you can call me that until my father inevitably disowns me.”

“You’ll still be a Black then,” Sirius said from the opposite side of the table. “I doubt your mother will disown you even if your father pressures her to.”

Draco raised an eyebrow. “You seem to have a lot of faith in my mother.”

“I knew her before I was disowned. She’s a strong woman who gets what she wants and I doubt she wants her only son to end up without a family and with nothing to his name. I don’t like you, kid, because you look and act too much like your father but if you have enough of your mother in you I can at least accept you as part of the Black family.”

Draco nodded. “Thank you, Black. I’ll do my best to be worthy of that acceptation.”

Harry smiled at Draco. It almost seemed like all that had been needed for Draco to get accepted more at Grimmauld Place was a friendship with Harry.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kudos and comments keep me motivated.
> 
> Find me on Tumblr: [@asexual-lovegood](http://asexual-lovegood.tumblr.com/)


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Turns out Harry is aroace in this one. Sorry, not sorry :D And Draco is too but we'll get to that in a future chapter.  
> I hope you like it!

Over the next few weeks everyone at Grimmauld Place slowly got used to having Draco around, mainly because he didn’t hide the majority of the day in his room any longer but instead spent more and more time with Harry, so much in fact that sometimes it seemed to Harry like they were always together, especially after he had decided to simply move into Draco’s room because he would end up there at least every other night anyway. He didn’t mind that though, on the contrary, he really liked spending time with Draco no matter if it was just the two of them or if they were joined by others.

 

A few days after Harry had switched bedrooms, he found out one of the reasons why he had never been woken by Draco’s nightmares before. Draco didn’t scream when he had a nightmare – at least not when he was having this nightmare. Instead he was whimpering and – Harry got up from his bed and knelt down next to Draco’s to understand what he was whispering – pleading for it to stop.

Harry knew from his own experience that it could be very disorienting to be touched while he was having a nightmare and for him it sometimes even made his nightmares worse, so he just sat down on the floor right next to Draco’s head and started whispering reassurances to him.

“It’s okay. I’m here. It’s just a dream, you’re safe.”

A few minutes later Draco’s hand twitched and not long after that his eyelids fluttered. Harry sighed relieved. Draco was waking up.

“Harry?” Draco asked after a few seconds of silence.

Harry had already gotten half off the floor, so he sat down again. “Yes?”

“Did you… talk to me just now?”

“Yes,” Harry said but it came out more like a question.

Draco turned his head towards Harry and smiled at him. “Thank you. It helped a lot.” Draco winced suddenly. “I hope I didn’t wake you?”

Harry shook his head. “You didn’t. Your nightmare was a lot quieter than mine usually are. I was already awake when I heard you.”

Draco nodded. “This is going to sound strange but I’m glad you were awake and helped me through it.

Harry smiled. “I’m glad, too. Is there anything else I can do to help you?”

“I…” Draco hesitated for several seconds. Harry let him have the time. He knew what it was like to wake up in the middle of the night and not have access to one’s whole brain, yet. “There is something but… I don’t know how to ask.”

“Just ask,” Harry said. He already had an idea what Draco might ask, and he wasn’t opposed to the idea at all. “We’re friends.”

“Can you, maybe, if you want to, uhm… sleep in my bed with me?”

Harry’s smile grew. Not only had he guessed right, Draco was also incredibly adorable when he was insecure. Harry was glad he had already made his peace with the way Draco made him feel a few days ago or he might have fallen over from the force with which it hit him. It wasn’t sexual or even romantic attraction he felt, it was just that, oh Merlin, Draco was incredibly beautiful and smart and funny, and Harry wanted to be around him forever or maybe even longer than that. Without that realisation influencing or slowing his reaction he was able to simply smile warmly at Draco and ask, “Where do you want me to lie?”

Draco seemed surprised by his reaction, but he caught himself again after just a few seconds – an impressive feat considering he had just woken up a few minutes ago.

“Behind me,” he said decisively, apparently emboldened by Harry’s response.

Harry did as Draco had asked with a small smile still on his lips. He wasn’t sure whether Draco wanted to be held so once he had laid down behind Draco’s back he simply curled up in his usual sleeping position. His eyes were already closed when Draco spoke again.

“Would you hold me?”

Instead of answering Harry slung one of his arms around Draco’s torso in a loose embrace.

“Thank you,” Draco said and shuffled a little closer to Harry. Just a few minutes later Harry noticed Draco’s breathing slowing down and allowed himself to fall back asleep as well.

 

The following morning was once again a late one for Draco and Harry and even though the smell of breakfast was trying to lure them, neither of them was inclined to get up. Harry had been the first to wake up but even when Draco had woken up as well he didn’t speak, content to just lie there and bask in the reassuring warmth of Draco in his arms for a while longer.

“Harry?” Draco ended the silence a few minutes later.

“Yeah?” Harry asked with a slurred voice still not quite ready to relinquish the tranquillity he was feeling.

“I think I’m ready to talk about my nightmares now,” Draco said more softly than Harry thought should be possible considering his words. Harry was wide awake in less than a second. He wouldn’t give Draco’s nightmares less than his full attention.

“Do you want to tell me about them?” he asked gently.

Draco turned around in his arms. “I guess so,” he said sounding awake as well. “You offered, after all, didn’t you?”

“I did,” Harry confirmed maybe a little unnecessarily. Then he remembered they were supposed to be at breakfast and he should maybe at least let Molly know they would not come downstairs anytime soon. “ _Accio_ wand.”

The wand flew from Harry’s bedside table on the other side of them room directly into his hand and just a minute later he had conjured a Patronus and told it everything Molly needed to know.

“Show-off,” Draco complained but his voice was too fond for Harry to feel offended.

“Next time I won’t make sure we’re not interrupted,” he still threatened good-naturedly.

Draco’s eyes widened a fraction too much for Harry to take his shock seriously. “You wouldn’t.”

Harry chuckled. “You’re right, I wouldn’t. I like showing off too much.”

“Thank you, Harry,” Draco said, and his voice told Harry they had once again reached more serious topics.

For what?” he asked.

“For making me feel more relaxed and for making sure this conversation stays private.”

Harry gave him a small smile. “You’re welcome.”

 

After that it didn’t take long for Draco to start talking. “The nightmare I had last night was mainly about my… family,” Draco hesitated only for a fraction of a second, but Harry still noticed and started stroking Draco’s back a little in encouragement.

Draco gave him a small smile in return which could mean nothing else but another silent _thank you_.

Harry smiled back at him, glad he could not only help Draco by listening but also with small gestures.

“I’ve had it ever since I ran away and joined your side. It always takes place in our formal dining room and my- Lucius and Narcissa stand in front of me and tell me about all the advantages there are to joining the Dark Lord’s side. At first the things they say are almost reasonable, they talk about how much power I could have with him as my master, as if that wasn’t an oxymoron, having any amount of power under a master.” Draco let out a harsh, cold laugh that almost made Harry flinch.

“Sorry,” Draco said. He had apparently still noticed Harry’s discomfort.

“Apology accepted,” Harry said because it wasn’t _okay_ , not really. He knew _why_ Draco had laughed like that, but he still hated that he had.

After a few seconds of silence, Draco continued recounting his nightmare to Harry. “Once they have exhausted their list of borderline-acceptable reasons, Bellatrix joins them out of nowhere and starts giving me all the reasons she is proud to be a Death Eater. She talks about torturing Muggleborns and killing Muggles and the perverse satisfaction she gets out of the Dark Lord simply looking at her. When she starts going on about the Cruciatus curse and how much she enjoys having it cast on her I usually start pleading with my brain to make it stop.”

Harry nodded, guessing that was what he had heard during the night.

“My brain doesn’t listen though, but Bellatrix hears me and casts the Cruciatus on me while she shrieks manically and asks me over and over again whether I enjoy it.”

Harry made his strokes on Draco’s back a little firmer to assure Draco he was safe, and his nightmare was over. Draco leaned into his touch and sighed.

“At first, I try to move away from her and out of the range of her wand, but the dream doesn’t let me. When I’m in too much pain to even try that anymore, she lifts the Cruciatus and presses her wand to her Mark instead to tell the Dark Lord I’m ready to be initiated. The doors to the dining room open what feels like an eternity later and the only mercy is that I always wake up a second before the Dark Lord reaches me.”

For a long time, the only sounds in the room were Draco’s and Harry’s breathing. Harry didn’t know what to say, what he _could_ say to make Draco feel better or at least not worse, and Draco, Harry guessed, had simply run out of words to say. Draco didn’t seem to mind the silence, though. On the contrary, with every second of silence that passed he relaxed a little more into Harry’s loose embrace. Harry would have thought he was completely content, if he hadn’t just listened to him recount one of his nightmares. But it appeared Harry’s presence, the assurance that someone was there with him, was enough to help Draco relax again. Harry couldn’t help thinking he would do anything to make sure Draco wouldn’t have to go back to his family ever again.

 

“Harry?” Draco asked when Harry was almost closer to sleep than wakefulness again.

“Yes?” Harry said with sleep lacing his voice.

“Nevermind,” Draco hurried to say. “You can sleep some more.”

Harry shook his head. “No, please tell me what you wanted to say. I’m awake, it’s just a little complicated to stay that way because I feel so comfortable.”

“I just…” Draco began. When he didn’t continue after a few seconds Harry started stroking his back again. He hadn’t even noticed he had stopped doing it, an indicator of how close he had gotten to falling back asleep.

“Would you tell me about your nightmares?” Draco asked eventually.

“Yes,” Harry decided without even having to think about it. “Do you want to hear about them now or was it just a general question?”

“Just a general question,” Draco said after a few more seconds of silence. “Dealing with my own nightmares is more than enough right now.”

“That’s okay, I understand,” Harry said honestly. “Do you want to stay here a little longer or should we go down to breakfast now?”

“Breakfast sounds great, actually,” Draco said with a smile creeping on his face. “Race you downstairs.”

Draco was up and dressed in a flash and Harry indulged in a bright smile before he got up as well and tried to catch up with him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kudos and comments keep me motivated.
> 
> Find me on Tumblr: [@asexual-lovegood](http://asexual-lovegood.tumblr.com/)


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> After almost four months it is finally done! I hope you enjoy!

In the days following Draco’s nightmare Harry and he grew even closer than before and at times they were so close that Ron accused them of being joined at the hip. Harry didn’t really mind the teasing though because he loved being so close to Draco, loved having someone he could tell everything knowing they wouldn’t judge him for any of it, and would actually at least try to understand what he was feeling or where he was coming from. He had always felt like Ron and Hermione were as good friends as he could get, and he’d gotten almost used to Ron’s occasional jealousy and Hermione’s tendency to nag and preach but his friendship with Draco was on a completely different level. That didn’t make him love or appreciate his other friends any less of course but he had to admit he had rarely spent any time with only them since he and Draco had hit it off and he felt bad about it, so the day after he noticed that he decided to rectify it.

When he told Draco about his decision that morning he was all for it as well. “You don’t need to ask my permission for that, Harry,” he said when Harry asked him about it. “I’ll be fine on my own, and as you said, your other friends surely miss you already so go on and spend time with them. I won’t die from boredom if that’s what you’re worried about.”

“All right,” Harry said and smiled at Draco before he went to find Ron and Hermione.

 

He found Hermione a few minutes later in the library where she sat with her head buried in a book, so he decided to leave her alone for now and instead look for Ron and maybe Ginny.

“Hey Harry. Where’s Malfoy?” Ron asked when Harry found him in the kitchen looking for a snack.

“Upstairs,” Harry said. “I think he’s practising.” He had started to hear the unmistakable sounds of Draco’s violins start a few minutes ago already, even though they were a lot more muted now that he was so far away from the source.

“That’s…” Ron cleared his throat. “Good for him I guess. Was there something you wanted?”

Harry winced. Had he really only searched out his friends when he needed something from them in the last weeks? He thought back to the day before when he and Draco had joined the others in a game of Exploding Snap and he had asked Ron to make some space on the couch, so he and Draco could sit next to each other, before proceeding to almost ignore everyone else in favour of Draco. From there it didn’t take a lot of thinking for other situations like it to pop up in his mind. He really had become a terrible friend in the last few weeks, hadn’t he?

“I just wanted to spend some time with you,” Harry said honestly once the memory snippets had stopped assaulting him feeling incredibly guilty. “But I can understand of you don’t want to spend time with me, I haven’t been the best of friends lately.”

“Well, you have all morning to make up for it,” Ron said.

Harry almost fell over from the relief that hit him when he heard those words. “Thank you,” he said, not knowing how else he could convey his gratitude. If he were with Draco- no. He was spending time with Ron now and he would do his best not to get side-tracked by thoughts of Draco, and especially not by thoughts comparing Draco to his other friends.

“No big deal, mate. Just try not to forget about me and Hermione and Ginny as much from now on when you’re with your boyfriend.”

Harry was already nodding along when he realized what Ron was saying. “What? Boyfriend? Draco isn’t my boyfriend.”

Ron rolled his eyes. “Come on, mate. You can’t think you’re stealthy about it when even I was able to see it as much as I didn’t want to. I don’t like him, but I can see he makes you happy, so I won’t complain too loudly, if that’s what you were worried about.”

Harry was perplexed. He guessed he was glad Ron would accept it if he were in a relationship with Draco, but he wasn’t and why would Ron think they were? They were _friends_ , wasn’t that obvious?

“What makes you even think I’m with Draco?” Harry asked. “We haven’t even kissed.”

“Well, you’ve done everything short of kissing,” Ron said and shrugged. “I just thought you were doing that in private whenever Malfoy shot you one of those meaningful looks and you disappeared for an hour or two.”

Harry shook his head vehemently. “No. Draco is not my boyfriend. We’re friends and I’m happy with that.”

Ron shook his head. “If you say so, mate.” He pulled something out of the cooling cupboard and then turned to leave the kitchen. “The others are in the sitting room if you want to come.”

Harry nodded and followed Ron to the sitting room and sat down next to him on the love seat he usually shared with Draco.

It hadn’t been long since he had become friends with Draco and had slowly begun to distance himself from his other friends, but Harry still felt a little off-centre now without Draco at his side. He would have to get used to that again soon anyway though because he doubted he would be able to spend as much time with Draco once they were back at Hogwarts as he did now, so he did his best to ignore his unease and enjoy the company. Almost inevitably though the first question he got after sitting down was about Draco.

“Hey, Harry. Where is your blonde counterpart?” George asked him with a wide grin, completely oblivious to Harry’s thought process.

Harry listened for a second and yes, the soothing melody of Draco’s violin was still there. “He’s practising,” he simply said, hoping that was enough of an explanation for George to let it go.

George nodded but a second later Fred asked, “What brings you here, then?”

Harry couldn’t resist rolling his eyes. “I wanted to spend time with you.”

“You’ve come at the right time, then,” Fred said. “Ginny just proposed we should play a round of Exploding Snap because in her opinion this antique furniture doesn’t have enough scorch marks, yet.”

“As long as Sirius doesn’t mind,” Harry said. This was still Sirius’ house after all, no matter how much he hated it.

“Don’t worry, pup, I don’t feel any attachment to any part of this house, feel free to do your worst,” Sirius said. Harry jumped a little because he hadn’t even noticed he was in the room. But it made sense of course that Sirius would rather spend time with the Weasley siblings than with Mrs Weasley, considering how often she had criticised him and his actions in the last few weeks.

“Do you want to join us?” Harry asked once his heartbeat had settled again.

Sirius got up from the armchair in the furthest corner of the room and instead sat down on the arm of the loveseat Harry was sharing with Ron. “Why not? Let’s see whether we can make this table look worse than the tapestry upstairs.”

 

Two hours and several rounds of Exploding Snap, most of which Ginny had won, later it was almost time for lunch, so Harry excused himself when the next round was set up and went upstairs to spend some more time with Draco.

When he entered their room, Draco was busy putting away his violin and only looked up at Harry for a second. Once he had put his violin away properly Draco turned around however and gave Harry a small smile. “Had fun?” he asked.

Harry smiled back at him. “Loads, but…” Harry didn’t know how to tell him that Ron thought they were in a relationship and whether he should tell him in the first place.

“But?” Draco prompted and sat down on his bed. He sounded intrigued and a little worried which convinced Harry to tell him.

“Ron thinks we’re in a relationship because according to him we’re acting like a couple would, just without the kissing.”

“Does that bother you?” Draco asked.

Harry sighed and sat down on his own bed. “Yes,” he said honestly. “But not in the way you might think.”

“In what way, then?”

Harry swallowed hard. This was already the second time he would come out to one of his friends – he had told Ginny about his sexual and romantic orientation earlier that summer because he thought she deserved to know why he didn’t want to be in a relationship with her – but that didn’t make it any easier. Draco deserved to know as well though, if only to understand why Harry was feeling the way he did.

“I’m aro-ace,” Harry said then, his Gryffindor courage taking over before he could chicken out.

Draco looked at him confused but didn’t say anything, so Harry elaborated.

“Aromantic and asexual, that’s what it means. I don’t feel sexual or romantic attraction to anyone, regardless of gender and I don’t want to be in a relationship with anyone, at least not in the traditional sense.”

While Harry was watching Draco’s expression changed from confusion to surprise and- was that wonder?

“There’s a word for that?” Draco asked and now Harry could hear the wonder in his voice. It was a wonder he knew, the wonder of finally having a word for something after feeling there was something wrong for a long time.

“Well, it’s technically two words for two very different things but… yes? Ginny tracked down a book on lesser known queer identities for me, I could lend it to you if you want to learn more.”

“Yes… that would be great. Thank you. And thank you for um… you know, explaining. I feel honoured that you decided to come out to me.”

Harry supressed the urge to tell him it was _no big deal_ because he realized it _was_ a big deal to him, at least right now.

“I’m just glad you reacted so positively,” he said instead. “I was a little worried you wouldn’t be as accepting.”

Draco had just opened his mouth to answer when there was a knock on the door.

“Lunch is ready,” Ginny said from the other side of the door. “Mom asked me to come get you.”

“We’ll be there in a minute,” Harry said and got up from his bed. “Come on, let’s have lunch,” he then said to Draco. “Afterwards I can give you the book and leave you alone for a few more hours so you can read it in peace. Sound good?”

Draco nodded and got up as well to follow Harry out of the room and downstairs for lunch.

 

Lunch was as uneventful as it was tasty, at least as long as Harry could ignore the looks almost everyone seemed to shoot him and Draco every so often. He wondered why he never even noticed them before because it seemed Ron wasn’t the only one who thought he and Draco were an item. As the meal went on the constant scrutiny and the way everyone seemed to overanalyse his every move got on his nerves more and more until he finally snapped.

“Could you stop it?” he asked maybe a little too loudly and all conversation around the table came to an abrupt halt.

“Stop what, dear?” Mrs Weasley asked after the silence had went on a little too long.

“Almost everyone here is looking at Draco and me like we’re going to start making out any second now and it’s getting on my nerves. Draco and I are not in a relationship and we haven’t ever kissed. We’ve simply overcome our differences and are good friends now. Is that so hard to believe?”

“But you’re closer with him than you’ve ever been with me or Ron and you’re only ever spending time with us now when he’s around,” Hermione said from the other side of the table.

“That’s true,” Harry said, trying his best to put the feelings that were still so new to him into words. “My friendship with Draco is different from the friendship I have with you, though, just like my friendship with you is different from the friendship I have with Ron and I don’t think there is anything wrong with that. But I’m sorry for distancing myself from you in the last few weeks. I got too caught up in my new friendship with Draco and I’ll try my best to divide up my time more equally from now on.”

Hermione nodded once but Harry wasn’t sure whether it meant she understood and accepted his explanation and apology or whether she had to think about it first and would get back to him. He really hoped it was the former.

“Does anyone else have something to add?” Mrs Weasley asked after another minute of silence and when no one said anything first Harry and then everyone else went back to eating.

 

“Thank you for what you said down there,” Draco said when he and Harry were back in their room after lunch. “I don’t think I could have said it any better.”

Harry smiled at him. “You’re welcome. Do you want to read the book now?”

Draco nodded, smiling as well, so Harry pulled it out from under his pillow and held it out to Draco.

“You sleep with it under your pillow?” Draco asked with a teasing lilt to his voice.

“Yes,” Harry said, silently daring him to comment on it. “Being aro-ace is one of the few things in my life that I’m absolutely sure of so it’s… comforting in a way.”

Draco smiled at him. “That is adorable.”

“Shut up,” Harry said and hid his face in his hands when he felt a blush spreading on his cheeks.

“Why?” Draco asked. “It’s true. Don’t you like compliments?”

Harry’s blush intensified. “I’m not used to getting compliments and never know whether they’re really meant that way,” he said, surprising even himself a little with his ongoing honesty.

Draco just stared at him for a few seconds before he said, “I’ll mean all the compliments I give you from now on.”

Harry could only nod in reply, he was completely speechless. Had Draco Malfoy, master of both underhanded and mocking compliments really just offered what Harry thought he did?

“Good. Maybe that way you will have become used to getting compliments by the time we graduate,” Draco said and grinned at Harry.

Harry rolled his eyes but had to grin as well. “Thanks, I guess. What would I do without you?”

“You’d stumble through the world, blushing at every compliment thrown your way,” Draco observed matter-of-factly before another grin took over his face.

That startled a small laugh out of Harry. “Most likely, yes.”

“I’m actually impressed you figured out your orientation with only minimal outside help,” Draco said, teasing again.

“I even surprised myself a little with that,” Harry said. “But now it’s time for you to figure out your orientation or at least get closer to figuring it out. I’ll be in the library, trying to finish my summer assignments before September 1st for once, if you need me.”

Draco chuckled. “All right. Good luck with that.”

“Good luck to you, too,” Harry said and shot Draco another smile before he got off his bed again and collected all his textbooks to take with him.

 

It was already several hours later when the door to the library opened for the first time since Harry had entered. Harry had been so engrossed in his Potions homework that it made him jump. He turned around to see who had joined him and found Draco still at the door, closing it as silently as possible. From that Harry guessed Draco hadn’t intended to startle him and probably wasn’t here because of him so he turned around again and tried to focus on his notes once more.

He was startled again just a minute later when his guess proved wrong and Draco, now standing next to him, said, “What are you working on?”

“Calming my heartbeat to a reasonable level,” Harry said after he had caught his breath.

“Sorry,” Draco said, at least sounding honest. “I didn’t mean to startle you. I thought you had noticed me come in.

“I did,” Harry said. “But you were so adamant about making as little noise as possible that I thought you didn’t want to disturb me.”

Draco shook his head. “It’s just habit I think. When you enter a library, you do so as quietly as possible. It’s part of that Pureblood etiquette I was telling you about a few days ago.”

“Why did you come here, then?” Harry asked, hoping it didn’t sound harsh.

Draco hopped onto the table Harry was sitting at before he answered. “I wanted to spend time with you. So, what are you working on?”

Harry sighed. “My Potions essay. But I haven’t gotten past the introduction in the hour I’ve been trying to write it.”

“Can I see?” Draco asked and held out his hand.

“Sure.” Harry was certain Draco would at least not be able to make it worse, so he looked for his most recent draft in the parchment chaos on and under the table and handed it to Draco along with his notes. Draco shot him a small smile and then began to read – or rather try to decipher Harry’s handwriting if his scrunched-up nose was anything to go by.

“Your introduction is good,” Draco said a few minutes later. “But before you continue writing I think you should organize your notes a little better, so you can easier build up a convincing argument.”

Harry was sure his confusion was visible in his eyes when he asked, “And how do I do that?”

“Here, let me show you how I do it,” Draco said and pushed himself up onto the table completely, so he could sit with his legs crossed.

 

It felt simultaneously like several hours and less than a minute had passed since Draco had come in when the door to the library opened again – which this time didn’t startle Harry – and Ginny poked her head in.

“Here you are. Mom told me to get you. Dinner’s ready.”

Draco looked up from Harry’s Potions book which he had been engrossed in for the last few minutes while Harry had finished his Divination homework. “We’ll be there in a minute,” he said.

“Harry?” Ginny asked. She probably knew that kind of promise from Hermione and didn’t trust it.

“We will,” Harry said to assure her. “Draco’s just looking for some weird picture to show me, which he can do just as well after dinner.” The last part of his sentence was more directed at Draco, who noticed it and looked up again to give Harry a nod and a sheepish smile.

When Harry looked back at Ginny she gave him a satisfied smile and pulled the door closed again.

 

As Harry had promised, he and Draco entered the kitchen just a minute later and sat down on the only two chairs left, Harry between Ginny and Hermione and Draco between George and Fred.

Draco joined the conversation the twins were having almost immediately so Harry decided he didn’t have to worry about him and instead turned towards Hermione’s questioning gaze.

“During lunch you said you’d try to divide your time between Draco and us more equally from now on, so why did you spend the whole afternoon with Draco again?” she asked.

Harry sighed. It would have been nice not to be interrogated about their friendship again but that had obviously been too much to wish for. “I didn’t spend all my time with Draco this afternoon. I spent a few hours alone in the library to finally get some of my summer assignments out of the way. Draco did join me later, though, and I spent time with him because I wanted to. If you want to, we can spend some time together after Draco showed me whatever he was looking for in my Potions book earlier.”

Hermione opened her mouth to reply but then closed it again and nodded instead. Harry let his lips stretch into a small smile that he saw mirrored when he turned to look at Draco.

 

After dinner Harry and Draco went back to the library. Halfway there Harry noticed Hermione was following them. He turned around, caught her eyes and shook his head.

“I’ll find you when we’re done,” he said. He wanted to spend some more time only with Draco at the moment and not only because Draco wanted to show him something in his Potions book.

Hermione nodded, and Harry watched her walk away and enter the drawing room. Then he turned around again and walked up to Draco who was waiting for him at the door to the library.

 

“Found it,” Draco said and nudged Harry’s leg with his a few minutes after they had entered the library and sat down at the table again.

“What is it?” Harry asked and leaned closer to Draco to see what he was looking at. Half of one page was covered in an illustration of a snake that Harry couldn’t identify, and the rest was filled with several paragraphs of text.

“This is supposed to be a Basilisk,” Draco explained, barely able to contain a grin, and pointed to the first paragraph on the page that detailed which parts of the Basilisk could be used in potions.

“What?” Harry exclaimed and covered his mouth with his hand a second later when he realized they were in a library. “You’re kidding me,” he continued much quieter.

“I’m not. The whole page is dedicated to the Basilisk and its properties, it can’t be any other snake.”

Harry shook his head. It had been more than two years since he had seen the Basilisk in the Chamber of Secrets, but he was sure it looked nothing like this. It didn’t have a head that resembled a crocodile’s more than a snake’s and it definitely didn’t… was that the tail of a rattle snake?

“That in no way resembles a Basilisk,” Harry said once he had gotten over his confusion.

“So… you know what a Basilisk looks like?” Draco asked hesitantly, giving Harry the feeling he hadn’t just shown him the picture of the Basilisk to find out more about Harry’s adventures at Hogwarts so he saw no harm in telling him the truth.

“Yes, I… fought one in our Second Year.”

“You fought one? In Second Year?”

Harry nodded and launched into a retelling of what had really happened in the Chamber of Secrets and everything that had led up to it.

“You were twelve,” was the first thing Draco said after Harry was done. “You were twelve and fought and killed a Basilisk more than ten times your size with the help of a _Phoenix_. I knew some of the professors at Hogwarts weren’t exactly reliable but damn, judging from that they’re damn near useless.”

Harry could only shrug. He didn’t think the professors were completely useless, but he could see why Draco would think so.

“I really hope they’re not as useless when it comes to making sure I survive the wrath of everyone who doesn’t like that I switched sides,” Draco muttered a few seconds later when he realized Harry wouldn’t outright agree with him.

“Don’t worry,” Harry said only half-joking. “I killed a Basilisk when I was twelve, I think I will be able to keep you safe from them, if the Professors can’t.”

Draco smiled at him. “I’ll be sure to keep that in mind.”

 

A few minutes later his conversation with Draco came to a natural end so Harry decided it was time to look for Hermione. He found her still in the drawing room where she was curled up on an armchair reading _Hogwarts: A History_. Harry had to smile. He got the feeling it was a kind of comfort read for her. She looked so cosy that he almost didn’t want to interrupt her.

“Hermione?” he said after watching her for a few more seconds. She held up her hand to show him she had heard him and a few seconds later looked up and set her book aside.

“Do you have time for me now?” Hermione asked and to Harry’s silent relief she didn’t sound annoyed about being kept waiting.

“Yes,” Harry said and stepped into the room. “Draco just wanted to show me a picture of a Basilisk in our Potions book and I ended up telling him about Second Year.”

“You really trust him, don’t you?” Hermione asked and patted the arm of the chair she was sitting in in an invitation for Harry to sit there.

Harry sat down and nodded. “I do. Don’t take this the wrong way but Draco understands things, understands me in a way you and Ron can’t.”

“I understand,” Hermione said. “Well, I understand now, after you spelled it out for us during lunch and dinner.”

“Good,” Harry said and shot her a teasing smile. “But I don’t think you only wanted to talk about Draco with me, did you?”

“Well, if you want to talk about him some more, I’ll listen, but we don’t need to talk about only him and your newfound friendship with him.”

“Thank you,” Harry said and hugged her which was quite awkward and a little complicated in his position. “It means a lot to me that you would be ready to listen.”

“That’s what friends are for, Harry.”

“I know that,” Harry said. “But in the past you were usually more annoyed than ready to listen when I talked about Draco.”

“Well, now that you’re friends with him I’ll try my best to be better about it. I can see that just being around him makes you happy.”

“It does,” Harry confirmed, for once not caring how Hermione might interpret his bright smile.

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen you smile that brightly,” Hermione said, smiling as well. “If Malfoy ever hurts you again, I will end him.”

Harry was taken aback by Hermione’s statement and the conviction with which she said it but at the same time he felt very grateful that she was his best friend.

“You should tell him that. I’m sure he still remembers you punching him in Third Year.”

Hermione’s smile widened. “Good times. My hand hurt for a few days afterwards, but I will never regret punching him.”

Harry had to laugh at that. “Better than setting Snape’s robes on fire?” he asked.

Hermione looked at him like she couldn’t believe he’d actually asked that. “Of course. Honestly, it might be one of my favourite memories. The look on his face afterwards was priceless.”

“It was,” Harry agreed.

After that their conversation slowed to a stop, but Harry didn’t mind. It wasn’t quite like the silences he shared with Draco, but it was still relaxing.

“Harry?” Hermione said a few minutes later. “What do you think our new Defence teacher might be like?”

“I don’t know…” Harry said and shrugged. “So far, we had two Death Eaters, one self-obsessed idiot and a werewolf. Maybe we’ll get an Auror this time, but Dumbledore could just as well find someone who is even less qualified for the job than Lockhart was because everyone thinks the job is jinxed and no one wants to do it anymore.”

Hermione smiled. “You might have a point there. I hope it will be someone who will actually be able to teach us something, now that You-Know-Who is back.”

“That would help a lot, yeah, but when has something like that ever gone our way?”

“Why are you so pessimistic sometimes?” Hermione asked.

“I’m not pessimistic, I’m realistic,” Harry said. “You should look up the difference sometime.”

“Shut up,” Hermione said and shoved Harry so hard that he almost fell off the chair.

“I’m just saying, it’s not pessimistic when I have evidence to support my way of thinking,” Harry said once he had righted himself again.

Hermione just rolled her eyes, but Harry knew he had once again made a good point because she didn’t argue further.

“Is there anything in _Hogwarts: A History_ on the jinx on the position of the Defence professor?” Harry asked, half to keep the conversation going and half because he genuinely wanted to know.

Hermione’s eyes lit up at the mention of what might be her favourite book considering how often she mentioned it but by the end of Harry’s question her expression had morphed into a frown. “It’s mentioned but not much more than that, probably because a lot of people still think it’s only superstition.”

“Well, if it’s not mentioned in _Hogwarts: A History_ it has to be a hoax I guess,” Harry said with a teasing smile and shrugged.

“I changed my mind, I don’t want to spend time with you any longer,” Hermione said but she was smiling so Harry was confident she wasn’t mad at him. “Go talk to Malfoy, maybe he will appreciate your brand of humour more.”

“All right, I’m already leaving,” Harry said and got up and out of Hermione’s reach before she could shove him again.

 

When Harry entered their room a few minutes later Draco seemed to already be fast asleep, so Harry did his best to undress quietly. He was already lying in bed adjusting his pillow to make up for the absence of his book when he spotted it lying on his bedside table. On top of it was a piece of parchment with two words on it. _Thank you_.

Harry smiled. “You’re welcome,” he whispered. Then he took the book and put it under his pillow again before he fell asleep as well.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kudos and comments keep me motivated.
> 
> Find me on Tumblr: [@asexual-lovegood](http://asexual-lovegood.tumblr.com/)


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This could prompt some tears so keep your tissues at hand :)

When Harry woke up the next day, Draco was already awake and sitting on his bed staring at a piece of parchment. Harry wondered what kind of message could capture Draco’s attention so thoroughly when an almost silent sob escaped him. Hearing that, Harry was up and next to Draco in a flash.

“Draco?” he asked gently.

Draco didn’t react, didn’t even seem to have noticed Harry get up. When Harry, nosy as he was whenever his friends were hurt, read the letter, he realized why. It was a letter from Lucius Malfoy, telling Draco he had been disowned.

“Draco?” Harry tried again and when he still didn’t get a reaction sat down next to Draco on the bed with only a few inches between them.

The slight movement of the mattress thankfully pulled Draco out of his daze and his head snapped up and then slowly turned in the direction of the disturbance until his eyes found Harry.

“Draco?” Harry said for the third time. “Can I hug you?”

Draco just looked at him for long seconds, constantly blinking away tears that were still leaking from his eyes. “Yes, please,” he finally said and collapsed into Harry’s waiting arms.

Harry didn’t hesitate to hug him tightly and rub his back in slow circles like Hermione had done to him a few times. It had always helped him calm down and he hoped it would help Draco as well.

“I knew this was coming,” Draco said when he had calmed down a little, though his tears were still dripping onto Harry’s shirt steadily. “I shouldn’t have been surprised, not to mention this shocked by it.”

“I know,” Harry said. “But sometimes even being prepared for something doesn’t make it easier to deal with. Your whole life just changed, and you’re allowed to feel sad or angry or happy or scared about it.”

“Thank you,” Draco said and hugged Harry a little tighter. “That sounds very smart. I’ll try to remember it.”

Harry blushed. “It’s just something I overheard Molly saying once.”

It was then that there was a quiet knock on the door.

“Harry? Draco? Are you awake?”

Harry couldn’t help the little giggle that escaped him. Of course, Molly would knock just a few seconds after he’d mentioned her. He looked at Draco to see his reaction.

“Can you ask her to come inside?” Draco asked. His voice was once again uncharacteristically small, but he looked determined.

“Yeah, sure,” Harry said and then a little louder, “Please come in, Molly.”

The door opened slowly, and Molly stepped inside, wearing a smile that looked way too bright for the situation she had stepped into. Harry didn’t begrudge her the smile though, she couldn’t have known what had happened, and it also made Draco smile a little which was always a good thing in Harry’s opinion.

“Good morning, boys. Did you sleep well?” It was then that she noticed Draco’s face was tearstained. “Oh, my, Draco, what happened?”

Draco didn’t look ready to say it, yet, so Harry answered for him, “His fa- Lucius Malfoy disowned him.”

When Molly didn’t say anything in return Draco held out the letter to her. Molly took it and read it, her smile taking on a sad tinge.

“I’m sorry, Draco,” she said once she had read the short letter and gave it back to Draco. “Is there anything I can do for you, to make you feel better?”

“I don’t…” Draco hesitated. “My- Narcissa knew a spell to cover up tears. Can you… Do you know it?”

Molly nodded and gave him a reassuring smile. “I know it. I had to dry a lot of tears in my time. Do you want me to cast it?”

Draco nodded and turned his face, so Molly had a clear view of it. Then he closed his eyes. Harry watched in wonder as, once Molly had said the incantation, the tear trails on Draco’s face disappeared and the red spots slowly got smaller and smaller before disappearing as well. When Draco opened his eyes again they weren’t reddened anymore either. Draco’s face truly showed no evidence of his earlier tears.

“Thank you, Mrs- Molly.”

“You’re welcome, darling. I’ll go back downstairs now and secure the two of you some breakfast. Take your time and come down when you’re ready.”

“We will,” Harry said and smiled at her. “Thank you, Molly.”

“How are you feeling?” Harry asked after Molly had closed the door behind her and the sound of her footsteps had grown faint.

Draco seemed to think about the question for a few seconds before he said. “A bit better, actually. It seems having someone here to mother me helped a little.”

Harry smiled at him. “Yeah, Molly’s really good at that.”

 

Harry and Draco spent another hour curled up in Draco’s bed in comfortable silence, content to just be around each other for a while until first Draco and then Harry got dressed and they went downstairs together.

“You won’t… tell anyone about the letter, will you?” Draco asked as they were sitting at the table in the kitchen, slowly making their way through the overly-full breakfast plates Molly had managed to secure for them. Harry wasn’t sure he could eat even half of it.

“Of course not,” he promised Draco. “It’s your story to tell. I only told Molly because you looked like you wanted to tell her but couldn’t.”

Draco nodded. “I thought as much. Thank you for that. It seems you can read me very well already.”

Harry let out a small laugh. “A side effect of watching you for four years, I guess.”

“Perhaps,” Draco said with a smile.

 

Despite Harry’s promise, Draco’s new status didn’t stay secret for long, though through no fault of Harry’s.

As they stepped into the sitting room after their breakfast, Fred was the first one to notice them and said, “Look who the Kneazle dragged in.”

“Harry and Malfoy are finally gracing us with their esteemed presence,” George added.

The moment his former last name left George’s mouth Draco flinched and then took a step back, colliding with Harry’s chest.

“I’m here,” Harry whispered so low only Draco could hear him and wrapped one of his hands around Draco’s ribs.

Draco nodded and pressed a little closer to Harry before he said, to the room at large, “Please call me Draco.”

His declaration was met with several surprised expressions, but it didn’t take long for Hermione to figure it out.

“You were disowned?” she asked.

Draco flinched again but then gave a jerky nod. “I’d rather not talk about it any further than that, if that is all right with you.”

“Of course,” Hermione said without hesitation and went back to the book she had been reading. The Weasley siblings weren’t quite so tactful.

“Does Mom know?” George asked.

“If she does she’s probably already adopted you,” Fred continued his line of sinking.

“At least mentally,” George finished.

“We told her,” Harry said before they could get even further into it.

Ron opened his mouth, probably to comment on it as well, but Harry glared at him until he shut it again. Thankfully after that no one dared to bring it up again and if it wasn’t for the noticeable pauses every time someone other than Harry addressed Draco, Harry would’ve almost been convinced they didn’t know.

 

When it was time for lunch, the Weasley siblings stood up almost as one and went to the kitchen followed by Hermione. Both Harry and Draco stayed though. Harry wasn’t yet hungry again and he guessed Draco was either feeling similarly or just didn’t want to face everyone who currently lived at Grimmauld Place on his own.

Molly looked at them surprised for a second but then seemed to accept their reluctance and followed her children to the kitchen. Once Molly had shut the door behind her, Sirius got up from his customary observational seat in one of the arm chairs and, to Harry’s surprise, approached them.

“I’m rubbish at emotional stuff but… Draco, if you want to talk to someone about what happened today, I’ve… been in a similar situation so I might be able to…” Sirius closed his mouth and then started over. “What I mean to say is, if you need someone to talk to about all of this, I’m here.”

“Oh,” Draco said surprised. “Yes. Thank you, Bla- Sirius.”

Sirius grinned and Harry thought he even looked a little proud of himself. Then he left for lunch as well, leaving Harry and Draco alone.

“I think I’m glad everyone knows now,” Draco said. “But thank you for keeping it a secret, even if it was just for a few minutes.”

Harry chuckled. “You’re welcome. But to be honest I didn’t expect the _Ice Prince of Slytherin_ to react so visibly to hearing that name.”

Draco shoved Harry lightly. “Shut up. I was just taken by surprise and I’ve started to let my guard down around you, so you better not make me regret that.”

“I hope I won’t because I really like you like this.”

Judging by Draco’s smile he shared the sentiment.

 

After dinner Draco went to talk to Sirius and even though Harry was curious what they might talk about he left them on their own. Since Sirius’ offer earlier that day Harry trusted him not to hurt Draco and he was sure that if Draco wanted him to know what they talked about he would tell him on his own time.

When Draco entered their room a few minutes later and pulled a piece of parchment out of his trunk, Harry’s curiosity got the better of him though.

“What are you doing?” he asked.

Draco’s head snapped up. He looked surprised. Then he blinked once and shook his head. “Sorry. I didn’t notice you were here. I want to write a letter to my mother. I asked… Sirius whether it was worth the risk and he taught me a spell to cast on the finished letter so only my mother will be able to see the true contents.”

Harry stared at Draco for a few seconds because he couldn’t quite believe what he was hearing. “You asked Sirius who has never not taken a risk in his life whether writing to your mother would be worth the risk?”

Draco nodded and smiled sheepishly. “I needed to talk to someone who wouldn’t dismiss the idea instantly. I still… I still love my mother and I need to know whether I’m still a Black.”

“And the only way to know that for sure is to talk to her,” Harry finished Draco’s train of thought. “I can understand that. I’m not sure whether I like the idea of you taking that risk, but I understand why you’re doing it. But it’s your choice so I won’t try to talk you out of it.”

Draco nodded again. “Thank you. Could you… leave for an hour or two? I’d rather be alone writing this.”

“Of course,” Harry said without hesitation. “Take your time. I’ll come back when I get tired.”

Draco shot him a thankful smile and then focused on the parchment on his lap and the letter he wanted to write again. Harry took that as his cue to leave the room.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kudos and comments keep me motivated.
> 
> Find me on Tumblr: [@asexual-lovegood](http://asexual-lovegood.tumblr.com/)

**Author's Note:**

> Kudos and comments keep me motivated.
> 
> Find me on Tumblr: [@asexual-lovegood](http://asexual-lovegood.tumblr.com/) (if you want to you can send me prompts there as well :))


End file.
